Scenes from the Painted Garden, from the Villa of Livia at Prima Porta, c.30-20 BCE, fresco
Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Massimo, Rome, Italy
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Unknown Scenes from the Painted Garden, from the Villa of Livia at Prima Porta, c.30-20 BCE, fresco Museo Nazionale Romano, Palazzo Massimo, Rome, Italy After the painted Odyssey cycle of our last entry, I was reminded of these beautiful paintings – perhaps my favourite of all from Rome, and coming a close second in the ancient world to the Thera landscapes. They originally covered the walls of the triclinium or dining-room of Livia, wife of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome. Though they're certainly aesthetically pleasing, it's their attention to botanical detail which I enjoy most. Each tree and plant species is painted with such care that they are identifiable, even now – you might be able to spot apples, lemons, daisies, roses, as well as bay laurel and maple trees. The illusion of a garden has been continued with the painting of a wall and fence around the allotment and the blue sky behind, populated by birds – as if the walls of the dining room have melted away and been replaced by a lush, continuously-blooming garden.
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Unknown Cycle with scenes from the Odyssey, Fresco, 1st cent. B.C. (before 46 B.C.) Frame: height 142 cm, width 292 cm Musei Vaticani, Rome Description from the Musei Vaticani collections website:
As we enter the era of the empire with Augustus (formerly known as Octavian), the first emperor of ancient Rome, there is perhaps no more fitting object to begin with than the Res Gestae, Augustus' autobiography. The Res Gestae (which translates into English literally as "things done," and forms a list of Augustus' achievements) was originally inscribed before Augustus' mauseoleum in Rome after his death in 14 AD, and supposedly written just before his death, though it seems likely that the text was in fact worked on and revised over Augustus' lifetime. The Roman original has not survived, but copies of the text were distributed throughout the empire; and the best-surviving copy was preserved on a temple to Augustus at Ankyra, Turkey (known as the Monumentum Ancyranum, and pictured in the top image). A replica is inscribed in Rome today, just facing the mausoleum of Augustus on the wall of the modern museum of the Ara Pacis (image below). A text, translation and commentary of the Res Gestae can be found here.
Unknown Coin with portraits of Cleopatra and Antony, Silver, c. 36 B.C. Diam. 2.6 cm, Weight 15.22 g The Art Institute of Chicago Description from GREUEL, MARY. "Coin with Portraits of Cleopatra and Mark Antony." Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 35, no. 2 (2009): 34-93. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40652400.
"This rare and exquisite silver coin portrays two of the most famous figures of antiquity, the charismatic Egyptian queen Cleopatra and the ambitious Roman warlord Mark Antony. Cleopatra ruled Egypt during the period when Rome was expanding its empire eastward toward the territories she controlled. By allying herself politically and personally first with Julius Caesar and, after his death, with Mark Antony, the queen hoped to maintain Egypt's autonomy and expand her own authority. The powerful political alliance between Antony and Cleopatra threatened Caesar's heir, his great- nephew Octavian, who in 33 B.C. defeated their forces in a decisive sea battle at Actium, which led to the pair's suicides. "To pay their armies and satisfy their other debts, Antony and Cleopatra minted coins bearing their likenesses. This example is remarkable in that it depicts both the general and the queen. Antony, seen here at bottom, is framed by an inscription that identifies him as a commander and one of Rome's trio of rulers. He is represented with short hair, a flat nose, a strong chin, and a long, thick neck. Cleopatra, shown at top, has a profile that is startlingly similar to Antony's, right down to the Adam's apple on her massive neck. This similarity was purposeful, since other coins issued by Cleopatra display a distinctly feminine profile. More of her figure is depicted than is Antony's, including her upper torso, which showcases her legendary pearl jewelry. An inscription and a crown circling her carefully braided hair identify her as a queen; she was, in fact, Egypt's last. "Cleopatra appears on the front of the coin, in the place of prestige, and Antony is on the back. This is unusual because, although she was queen of Egypt, her country was a subservient ally of Rome. By pairing their faces on coinage, the rulers advertised a powerful new partnership that put Egypt's enormous agricultural riches at the disposal of one of Rome's rulers. Antony and Cleopatra planned to govern Egypt equally and cooperatively - to the joint venture the queen brought her hereditary right to rule, while Antony brought Roman military power. Their coin relayed this message in its coupling of remarkably similar images and in the inscriptions circling the heads. This kind of bold statement undoubtedly offended their enemies in Rome, especially Octavian, and helped bring about their eventual downfall." The "Ides of March" denarius commemorates one of the most famous events in history – the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. Struck by the tyrannicide Brutus in late summer/early autumn 42 BC, it bears the portrait of Brutus himself along with (just visible across the top) the words BRUT IMP, or "Brutus the general" – particularly apposite, as Brutus and the other conspirators were at the time readying themselves for a battle against Caesar's supporters and heirs (the Battle of Philippi, which would take place later that year in October 42 BC). The reverse bears the striking inscription EID MAR – Eidibus Martiis, or the Ides of March, commemorating the date of Caesar's death – beneath the pileus, the cap of liberty given to freed slaves, symbolising the new liberty of the Republic, and two daggers, standing for the two principal conspirators, Brutus and Cassius. Only around eighty examples of this coin survive, as they were later recalled by the victorious Mark Antony and Octavian after Brutus and Cassius' defeat at the Battle of Philippi.
As we approach the end of the Republic, it is impossible not to mention Cicero, the great statesman and orator whose speeches and letters provide one of the most detailed accounts of this turbulent historical period. Cicero was born in 106 BCE in Arpinum, and rose through the ranks of the Roman political system against the odds to become consul in 63 BCE. During his consulship, he discovered and made public a plot against the Republic by the aristocrat, Catiline, and delivered a series of brilliant speeches later known as the Catilinarians, which would ultimately see the conspirators condemned to death. When Cicero's opponents claimed, however, that his sentencing of the conspirators without trial was illegal, Cicero was exiled in 58 BCE. He returned to Italy in 57 BCE and became one of the leading figures in the later years of the Republic, supporting first the general Pompey against Julius Caesar, and then Caesar's great-nephew Octavian against Caesar's former general, Mark Antony. When Octavian and Antony joined together to form an alliance in 43 BCE, however, Antony and Octavian together issued Cicero's name on a list of brutal proscriptions of enemies of the state; and Cicero was caught and killed as he left his villa in Formiae in December 43 BCE.
It is impossible to be certain of the identity of Cicero's villa; however, the villa above, Villa Rubino (now in private ownership) has historically been identified as belonging to Cicero. While it is likely no more than wishful thinking – several opulent villas have been discovered in the area, any one (or none) of which might have been his – it is tantalising to say the least to imagine the Roman orator departing from this 1st century BC nymphaeum (shrine to the nymphs, pictured above) and setting out to try to escape his death. Today's artefact is particularly close to my heart. In 2006 I was lucky enough to take part in an archaeological dig in Pompeii with the Anglo-American Project in Pompeii (AAPP), working in the north-western corner of the ancient city (Region VI, Block 1). One of the many fascinating aspects of digging in this area of Pompeii was that it was particularly affected by the Social Wars, the civil conflict that tore apart Italy from 91 BCE when the "allies" of Rome revolted against the Romans – probably because they wanted full citizenship, to be "full members of Rome's club", as Mary Beard puts it. Pompeii was besieged by none other than Sulla, the Roman general and dictator who we saw in the previous History of the Classical World entry – and evidence of his attack still remains at the site today. In the first photo, the walls of Pompeii show evidence of ballista strikes – the ancient equivalent of cannon balls. The second image, from an earlier AAPP dig in 1999, shows lead shot – ancient bullets, launched from slings. It's a striking reminder that, even though we think of the cities of Italy as thoroughly Roman, it wasn't always the case – and that Romanness (or Romanitas) was both highly contested and highly prized.
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AuthorEmily Hauser is a classicist and researcher at Harvard and author of historical fiction recovering the lost women of the ancient world, including FOR THE MOST BEAUTIFUL and FOR THE WINNER. Archives
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